


The Sleeping Knight

by LadyDisdayne



Series: QuiObi AUs [2]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Alternate Universe - Fairy Tale, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Sleeping Beauty Fusion, Angst with a Happy Ending, Fairy Tale Style, Jedi Are Wizards, Jedi Qui-Gon Jinn, M/M, Prince Obi-Wan Kenobi, Sleeping Beauty Qui-Gon, True Love's Kiss
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-24
Updated: 2020-12-24
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:48:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,137
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28281168
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyDisdayne/pseuds/LadyDisdayne
Summary: Sidious stood bent over Prince Obi-Wan, dragging a cruel, crooked finger down the child’s fair skin. He began to laugh, and cursed the child, that Obi-Wan would live as a normal prince, only to die of heartbreak on the eve of his twenty-fifth birthday.Or, a retelling of Sleeping Beauty, but not like you would expect
Relationships: Qui-Gon Jinn/Obi-Wan Kenobi
Series: QuiObi AUs [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2110623
Comments: 17
Kudos: 68





	The Sleeping Knight

**Author's Note:**

> This started as an AU inspired by one of my favorite artists, ins0mnia and a beautiful art they shared in the QuiObi server (of Qui-Gon's death... but hey...here we are with an everyone lives AU) Their Twitter is here: https://twitter.com/ins0mnia11 
> 
> For the Chibs, who demanded I post my oversized AU rambling as a real fic. And for the rest of the QuiObi server, for their kindness and love. Happy holidays ya bunch of nerds.

Once upon a time in a kingdom far far away there was a prince born to a good king and queen. Their kingdom was beautiful, tucked safely away in a picturesque valley. Prince Obi-Wan Kenobi’s birth was highly celebrated, as the queen had longed for a child for many, many years.

Obi-Wan’s name day came with a kingdom wide celebration, guests from far and wide in attendance, bringing the most luxurious of gifts. Gold and crowns from neighboring kingdoms, mystical artifacts from distant lands, and, most importantly, magical blessings from the Jedi,  a council of wizards known for their wisdom and power, who blessed the prince with wisdom of his own, to be a brilliant negotiator and balanced leader. 

The festivities lasted all day and into the night, laughter and joy filled the castle. But a dark cloud settled over the kingdom and at midnight, there was a warning to all in attendance that went ignored by all by Master Yoda, the wisest of the Jedi. 

At the party’s height, the room went dark and dense smoke filled the air, cackling and red eyes filled the space, striking fear into the hearts of the guests, the queen the most scared of them all. 

You see, the queen had grown so desperate for a child that she had sought out the Sith Lord Sidious, a powerful, but evil sorcerer and had promised him power and riches in exchange for the ability to have a child. 

But when the time had come to give the Sith his due, she denied him his prize, even banishing him from the kingdom.

Sidious stood bent over the prince, dragging a cruel, crooked finger down the child’s fair skin. He began to laugh anew, and cursed the child, that Obi-Wan would live as a normal prince, only to die of heartbreak on the eve of his twenty-fifth birthday. The Sith vowed to return that distant day, to seize the kingdom and make it his own, an Empire to rule in darkness. 

With a swirl of his cape and a flash of lightning the Sith was gone. 

Master Yoda approached the babe’s cradle, scooping the infant into his arms. 

“Undo the curse, I cannot.” He says. “Transfer it to another, possible, if one among us, willing to take this burden, is.”

Without hesitation, a young Jedi Knight stepped forward, graceful and strong. He bowed, his long hair falling like a curtain around his shoulders. 

“Master, I will take this burden. In twenty five years, I shall have lived a good life.”

Yoda smiled at the young man. “Very well, Knight Jinn. Change this curse, your kindness shall. Death none shall suffer, only sleep. A deep slumber that only pure love will overcome.” Master Yoda began to meditate, using the Force’s light to change the curse, transferring it to one willing. 

Once it was done, the king stood, asking to know what price the Jedi would require. None, Master Yoda said, save that the Prince trains with them after his twelfth year, to prepare him for Palpatine’s attack that will come on the day of his twenty-fifth birthday. 

And so over the years Obi-Wan grew, strong in the Force and kind and gentle, loving and good. He cared for all of his people and was beloved by them. He was never told the circumstances of his birth or the truth of his curse, but instead was allowed to grow and thrive unburdened. 

By the time his thirteenth birthday approached, he had long been prepared for the Jedi’s training, and kissed his mother and father farewell, departing for the Jedi Temple deep in the mountains. The edifice soon became Obi-Wan’s home, a place of quiet and study and he excelled under their guidance, even if he knew not why. 

But there was one knight in particular he grew closer and closer to with every passing month spent at the temple. Qui-Gon Jinn, a kind if not stubborn man, with a regal face and voice like thunder echoing through the mountain passes.

At first their bond was one of brotherhood, of strong friendship. They fought and studied side by side, a master and apprentice unlike any the Jedi had ever before seen.The Force resonated between them, keeping them in balance and sync, growing ever stronger, ever more intertwined. 

As the years spiraled by in a haze of training and study, Obi-Wan grew older and a new sort of love for Qui-Gon bloomed in the young prince’s heart. Burning like the sun, it was one that he scarcely understood. 

It grew stronger as they sat in quiet meditation in the Force side by side, as Qui-Gon accompanied Obi-Wan through his royal duties and state dinners and tours of the kingdom, as they were eventually sent out into the kingdom on various missions and quests. 

Realization and clarity dawned on Obi-Wan slowly, like warmth seeping back into a cold limb, a winter’s sunrise that breaks bright and clear after crawling its way through a long night. He was in love with Qui-Gon Jinn. 

For Qui-Gon, the understanding was much more sudden, much more surprising. It came in a flash of Obi-Wan’s smile one warm summer’s day, as they lay side by side under the Temple’s apple trees, not long before Obi-Wan’s twenty-fourth birthday. 

Qui-Gon had hoped that he would escape the heartbreak promised by the curse, and had vowed to never fall in love, to never open his heart to another. But it seemed the Force had other plans for his destiny, for he was in love with the fair prince. And how could the prince ever love him in return?

At first, Qui-Gon felt nothing but a deep seeded heavy sorrow, his chest burning with a sense of loss. A sorrow for his own life that would be cut short by the curse, even if it was merely to slumber, awaiting a true love’s kiss, a kiss from a man that would never love him in return. He ached, thinking of never seeing Obi-Wan’s smile outside of his dreams, of never holding Obi-Wan in his arms again. 

That sorrow soon turned to a decaying guilt in his heart. Guilt for his selfishness, for his grief. The prince was young, brilliant, a mighty future leader of his people and shouldn’t be burdened with unrequited love. Especially with a love such as Qui-Gon’s. 

Despite his crumbling heart, Qui-Gon stood tall and proud next to Obi-Wan that year, drinking in every laugh, every smile like a man starving, carving every moment they spent together into his heart and soul. An eternity of sleep didn’t seem quite so miserable, if he could have these memories, if he could dream of Obi-Wan. 

All too soon, the day of Obi-Wan’s twenty-fifth birthday came. It began like so many days had before it, a clear morning, the sun glowing with the promise of the day’s warmth and excitement.

But Qui-Gon still felt cold. He rode with Obi-Wan to the castle, where preparations for the Sith’s return had been made and a lavish party planned for the Prince’s permanent return home. Jedi and the royal battalions alike guarded the castle, waiting for an attack that never came. 

As the day turned into evening and the night stretched on, even the most stalwart Jedi agreed that the Sith’s threat was no more. Palpatine must have died of old age, many said, or Master Yoda’s spell had defeated him after all, the king decided, throwing open the gates. 

A feast was brought forth, rich and decadent, everything a royal would want and crave. The food felt like ash in Qui-Gon’s mouth, the sweet wine like vinegar. The king and queen raised their glasses, excited for a grand announcement, a proposal for Obi-Wan’s bright future. Obi-Wan stayed quiet, only tilting his own glass as his sad eyes watched Qui-Gon. 

A young woman bowed at the king's introduction, a princess from a neighboring kingdom, proud and beautiful, everything that Qui-Gon was not and that Obi-Wan deserved. The king led her to the empty seat next to Obi-Wan, placing her hand on his. Obi-Wan’s eyes were wide as he looked between his father and the princess, his breathing shallow. 

But Qui-Gon barely noticed as his heart began to race, almost unable past the blood rushing in his ears to hear as the king proclaimed the prince and princess’ engagement, an alliance between two prosperous kingdoms. 

Qui-Gon bolted from the room, pain flowering in his heart, unlike any he had felt before. Qui-Gon ran deep into the forest, sobbing and gasping for breath, his lungs burning and throat choking closed. His vision blurred, white and black all at once. Deep in his chest, his heart shattered, the pieces like broken glass, clawing at him from the inside, ripping his soul to shreds. 

“Oh,” Qui-Gon thinks. “This must be what it means to die of heartbreak.” 

As Qui-Gon collapsed to the forest floor, a black cloaked figure laughed above him, almost maniacal.

“You might not be the princely prize I longed for, Jedi.” The Sith leans close, his stinking breath choking Qui-Gon, a pleased grin stretched on thin lips, satisfied with the destruction of a Jedi like Qui-Gon Jinn. “But something tells me that your broken heart may just lead me to it.”

The last thing he saw as Qui-Gon fell into a deep slumber was the Sith’s haunting yellow eyes, firmly set on a burning castle and a waiting prince. 

With a raise of his hand, the Sith and Qui-Gon vanished, and a kingdom began to fall. 

Miles away, Obi-Wan ducked under yet another fallen branch, screaming for his lost love, his legs burning as he ran through the forest, following Qui-Gon’s trail. He panted, wishing Qui-Gon was by his side, that he had been as brave as his kingdom thought him to be, that he told Qui-Gon his true feelings. 

But as Obi-Wan reached the edge of the forest, the earth began to shake and a vortex of black and red opened above the castle, laced with lightning and thunder that cracked the battlement stones and tore the roofs from their rafters. 

Obi-Wan screamed for Qui-Gon once more, falling to his knees. A kind hand rested upon his shoulder and Obi-Wan looked up into Master Yoda’s eyes. 

And so, far too late, the story of Obi-Wan’s birth and Qui-Gon’s sacrifice is told, a story of a story of a miracle prince and a brave, selfless knight and a love strong enough to end the Sith once and for all. Obi-Wan wept for all that he had lost, for the man he loved. 

“Dead, he is not, young Kenobi. In the tower, he sleeps. A trap by Palpatine, this is, to end your kingdom. Let him do so, you must not, hum?”

Master Yoda led Obi-Wan into the forest that night, taking him far from the only person he held dear, far from his parents locked away in towers of their own.

Soon, a plan was made and an army of Jedi and soldiers was gathered to their aid. And soon, a kingdom was brought together under a mighty prince whose love can topple evil empires and their wicked emperors. 

But, my friends, the many battles and wars that Obi-Wan fought and won and lost are not important. Nor are the months and years he spent looking towards a lonely tower, aching to be by his love’s side once more. 

No, what truly matters is that evil is always defeated by love. And Obi-Wan had so much love to give, for his family, for his Jedi friends, for Qui-Gon Jinn. No matter the space and time that separated them, that unwavering love drove the prince ever forward, burning bright in his heart, a weapon unlike any other. 

After Palpatine was defeated and his parents freed, Obi-Wan climbed each step of the crumbling tower, a thousand what ifs and insecurities weighing heavily on his mind and heart. But he remembered Qui-Gon’s gentle eyes and small touches, every soft brush of fingers against his cheek. Small gestures that spoke multitudes, every action made out of love. 

The Sith had laid the Jedi’s body in an unused chamber, spread out on the cold stone floor. His long hair fanned around him like a halo, grown even longer in his slumber. Obi-Wan knelt beside the still body, his heart breaking as he failed to find any sign of the brilliant life that had been Qui-Gon. 

Maybe Palpatine’s curse had succeeded after all, Obi-Wan thought, breaking his hear. 

“I love you, Qui-Gon. Now and forever.” Obi-Wan leaned forward, kissing Qui-Gon gently, his hot tears staining both of their cheeks. His heart felt like glass, cracking and splintering under the weight of his grief. 

“And I you, Obi-Wan. And I you.” 

And they lived happily ever after. 


End file.
